Soup has been a part of the UK diet since time immemorial and it is a staple on restaurant menus around the world. But how much would you really be willing to pay for a good bowl of soup? Would you be tempted to pay more for exotic or risqué ingredients or crazy cooking techniques?
If you answered yes, we have some eye wateringly expensive soups that might just pique your interest. Campbell’s have created a list of the words most expensive soups on earth.
The first is a soup of the day at the Norwood Chinese Restaurant in Australia. A single bowl of this broth costs $450 Australian dollars, £263, but the price may not be the only point of contention for diners interested in supping on this soup. To make the soup requires nearly a kilo of shark fins, an ingredient that draws objections from wildlife conservation groups around the world. The soup is made more expensive by the addition of 10 Abalone along with imported scallops and Chinese black mushrooms.
The second soup on our list is expensive, in part, because the customers said it should be. At the Taiwanese restaurant Niu Ba Ba, the chef Wang Congyuan actually asked his high profile clients how much they would be willing to pay for his beef noodle soup. The most common answer was 10,000 New Taiwan dollars. That works out to about £246. It took Wang 15 years to get his beef noodle soup recipe just right. He uses the best beef from Japan, Australia, the U.S. and Brazil. Wang even cuts each type of beef differently to make sure it cooks and serves perfectly.
What makes the soup even more expensive is the method used to cook the beef. Much of it is slow braised over 3 days. At the end of each day the meat is refrozen to let it rest. All in all the total cooking process takes about one week to prepare this costly concoction.
Our third entry into the list of the most expensive soups costs so much because of its ingredients and the legend behind the soups creation. At the Kai Mayfair in London, every bowl of Buddha Jumps Over the Wall soup costs about £152. This expensive soup got its name from a story about the soups creation. The tale goes that the soup was first made near a Buddhist monastery. The smell of the meat filled broth was so alluring that one of the Buddhist monks, who was bound by his religion to be vegetarian, jumped over the wall of the monastery to ask for a bowl of the soup. A poet later wrote that the soup was so good Buddha himself would have jumped the wall for a taste.
While Buddha may or may not have loved this soup, environmental groups are decidedly against it. The soup contains shark fin and abalone, both of which come with environmental and ethical baggage. It also takes two days to actually make this divisive delicacy and the recipe reads like directions for putting together a lunar lander.
The fourth and final bowl of soup has a price tag that blows all the other competitors out of the water, or broth if you prefer. With one bowl costing a bank account withering $5,000, £3,800, this Vietnamese Pho soup is probably the most expensive soup on earth. It is the creation of Tiato, a Vietnamese restaurant in California. They created the soup to auction off for a children’s hospital charity. The ingredients include A5 Wagyu beef, white alba truffles, foie gras broth and noodles made from rare blue lobster.
While these ingredients do sound incredible, they may not be enough to convince most people to part with over £3,000 in cash. What makes this particular dish even more costly is the fact that the £3,800 price is only a starting bid. As the soup was part of an auction, it may have actually been sold for far more.
If you are interested in more affordable fare, Campbell’s has a great range of soups to satisfy everyone. You can also check out our range of onsite recipes to learn how to add Campbell’s to some of your favourite recipes.
FAQs
The most expensive soup available on a menu is served in London's upscale Mayfair neighbourhood. Guinness World Records certified that the £108 bowl of “Buddha Jumps Over the Wall soup” is the most expensive on any menu in the world.
What is the most expensive soup in the world? ›
Campbell's have created a list of the words most expensive soups on earth. The first is a soup of the day at the Norwood Chinese Restaurant in Australia. A single bowl of this broth costs $450 Australian dollars, £263, but the price may not be the only point of contention for diners interested in supping on this soup.
Does the Campbell Soup Company still exist? ›
We've been proudly making food for over 150 years. Our heritage is a testament to the iconic brands and delicious foods that our employees—past and present—created and continue to build upon today.
Is Campbell's soup discontinued in the UK? ›
We are back in stock and our iconic condensed soups are back on the shelves of the major supermarkets. Thank you for your patience and loyalty to our brand!
What was the old Campbell's soup slogan? ›
In the early 1930s, Campbells' introduced the slogan MMM MMM GOOD with the launch of their chicken noodle soup. The iconic slogan quickly became synonymous with the Campbell's brand and was such a hit with consumers that Campbell's decided to make it their official slogan.
What is the No 1 soup in the world? ›
According to the Taste Atlas Awards, the international food database, the Filipino favorite, Sinigang, is hailed as the best soup in the world.
Did China buy Campbell's soup? ›
The joint venture will be based in Campbell's current offices in Shanghai and will be responsible for manufacturing, packaging, branding, marketing, selling and distributing soup, broth and stock products in China. Campbell will retain ownership of Campbell brands and recipes and license those to the joint venture.
Why is Campbell's soup closing? ›
The aging facility and inefficient nature of the site's configuration can no longer support the increased consumer demand and continued growth of the business. Campbell will close the facility in phases and expects to cease operations by July 2026, with the first phase to impact 120 of its 330 employees in August 2024.
What is the Campbell Soup Company scandal? ›
The lawsuit against Campbell's is for allegedly violating the Clean Water Act by discharging pollutants into Maumee River from its facility, which sits about 43 miles upstream of Lake Erie. The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) also filed a lawsuit, on behalf of U.S. EPA.
What is the oldest Campbell soup? ›
Soup history here at Campbell dates back to 1895, when we introduced our first flavor, a ready-to-serve Beefsteak Tomato soup. Just two years later, in 1897, Dr. John T. Dorrance invented the process of condensing soup, leading to smaller packaging and lower prices.
CAMDEN, N.J. March 18, 2008-Campbell Soup Company (NYSE: CPB) today announced it has completed the sale of its Godiva Chocolatier business to Yildiz Holding A.S. for $850 million. Campbell announced the agreement of sale on December 20, 2007.
Why can't I buy Campbell's condensed soup? ›
The iconic Campbell's Condensed Soup brand will disappear from UK shelves for good next March, The Grocer can reveal. The 110-year-old soup brand - made famous by Andy Warhol's 1960s pop art prints - is to be rebranded as Batchelors and will carry a 'Soon to be Batchelors' message from next week.
What did Campbell's used to be called? ›
We were founded by fruit merchant and namesake Joseph Campbell and commercial canner Abraham Anderson in 1869 as Anderson & Campbell. We claimed the name Campbell Soup Company during Dr. John T. Dorrance's tenure as president in honor of his groundbreaking invention—condensed soup.
Does Kraft own Campbell's? ›
Those rumors may be put to rest now; Kraft Heinz, which formed when Kraft Foods and Heinz merged, decided not to pursue a Campbell acquisition, according to the New York Post, which first reported on Kraft's interest in Campbell.
Who made Campbell soup famous? ›
Andy Warhol famously appropriated familiar images from consumer culture and mass media, among them celebrity and tabloid news photographs, comic strips, and, in this work, the widely consumed canned soup made by the Campbell's Soup Company.
What is considered a luxury soup? ›
Bisque is considered a luxury soup and best served for dinner. Cream. They are prepared with a puree of vegetables, poultry, fish or meat and thickened with bechamel sauce or a cream finish.
What soup has been cooking for 45 years? ›
The giant pot of neua tune, a beef stew popular in the Thai capital, has been simmering since owner Nattapong Kaweenuntawong was a child, more than 45 years ago. Growing up studying the exact flavor profile of the stew from his father, Kaweenuntawong now balances the flavor himself daily.
Why is Heinz soup so expensive? ›
A spokesperson for Kraft Heinz said: "Like the rest of the food industry, we continue to face significantly increased production costs – whether it's ingredients, energy, or packaging – and rising inflation.
